Today, I choose not to remember them as towers of steel or cement or glass. Nor as towers of light in the bugled air. And certainly not as exploding hives or doomed smoldering pyres. No, I do not want to recall how they fell. Today, I prefer to remember them as they swayed, while they swung and rolled the rope under the feet of the beautiful madchild who loved them so.
If you have not seen the film Man on Wire documenting high-wire artist Philippe Petit's incredible feat of August 7, 1974, I recommend it and leave some video embeds and links below. Click on the film's name to see the trailer.
The video below captures some of the best photos of the day and shots from the film:
For news footage from that day, including helicopter views and interview with the police officer who arrested him, see the following clip:
I recommend viewing the videos in full screen mode and at the highest definition available. Click on this link to see a slideshow of Petit's astonishing stroll, with Leon Russell singing "Tightrope" as soundtrack.
To those who built them high
and those who gaped below,
to those who tumbled down
and those who combed the rubble.
And to those of us
who see them yet,
our still hearts clutched
on the quivering wire,
pilgrims perched on this traceless trail.
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